It is sometimes convenient to have an apparatus that may be changed between a compact configuration that has small maximum dimensions and an extended configuration that has larger maximum dimensions.
One housing design that achieves this is the ‘flip’. The housing has a first portion and a second portion interconnected via a hinge. In the compact or closed configuration, the first housing portion and the second housing portion are folded together about the hinge. In the extended or open configuration, the first housing portion and the second housing portion are rotated away from each other about the hinge.
Another housing design that achieves this is the ‘slide’. The housing has a first portion and a second portion mounted for sliding movement on top of the first housing portion. In the compact or closed configuration, the second housing portion is slid over the first housing portion. In the extended or open configuration, the second housing portion is slid away from the first housing portion revealing the whole or most of the first housing portion.
A lip or discontinuity typically exists in these housing designs between the first housing portion and the second housing portion where they are brought together in the compact or closed configuration. This discontinuity may make the apparatus difficult to secure and/or make it susceptible to ingress of damaging foreign matter.
These designs do not necessarily optimize the use of the display in the compact configuration. In the flip design, the main display is typically inside the apparatus in the compact configuration and is revealed only when the configuration of the device is changed to the extended or open configuration. One solution to this problem has been to put a secondary display on the exterior of the apparatus so that it is visible in the compact or closed configuration but that increases cost. In the slide design, as the second housing portion is slid over the first housing portion a part, potentially a substantial part, of the first housing portion is obscured by the second housing portion in the compact or closed configuration. That obscured part is not available for use as a display.